The fanime magazine thing: My biggest complaint is that I would really, really love to have all the summaries for every anime/movies at the con. I don't really know any of the shows that fanime plays so it's kind of hard to decide what I want to watch. I gotta go up to all the salons and read the summaries if the show sounds interesting to me. It would be helpful if people had some kind of wifi device, I guess, but a lot of people don't have those. I'd rather not pay the extra free for the cellphone internet, sorry!

The full list of all of the anime shown at the con includes something like 150+ series. That, coupled with the Asian Movies, would have been 4-5 times the size of the space currently alloted for anime descriptions. Relative to the current size of the whole program guide, to include 50 word descriptions of all the series would take up nearly half of the guide. I agree with your point, but practically speaking it would get kind of crazy and isn't super feasible.

Maybe we could switch to haiku descriptions or 3-word summaries ^_^ That would amuse me and be awesome for space but I assume less helpful.

I totally agree that it would be useful to maybe have some photocopy packets of series and descriptions for people who specifically seek it out. Or to save you time, maybe just assemble a description packet for each info desk or have it all in one place so you're not walking room to room every time.

Good point. Your second suggestion is a good one. I'd definitely seek one of those out. In the magazine, the summaries of the anime/movies are the only things I really read in detail. Otherwise, maybe someone should make a page on the fanime site that has summaries of everything. At least I can reference that when I go home every night.

Edit: About the person complaining about the Gong thing, I think it's fine. I don't care that I was called a tranny(although these days in some states, that's calling someone that could go on their criminal record as hate speech XD;). My problem with the Gong competition is that when I participated last year, it kind of pissed me off how the judges were judging it. I mean, not that I thought I should have gotten a prize, but I was certainly more horrible than that friend of theirs they gave a prize to just for agreeing to participate(seriously, she was super not into it and didn't do anything remotely amusing). I almost think a voting system would be better, but it would also take a ton of more time. I dunno. I kind of wish the judges were less biased, though.

Dance: The dance was great and fun me and my friends had no issue. But the one issue I did have was one of the rovers tried to stop me because they thought I was under the influence.. Now the only reason they'd think that.. was that I had lost a friend so I was running around back and forth looking for that person. But I didn't stumble or do anything to make myself flat out look stupid. I was not under the influence and honestly did not believe I gave them any reason to think I was either. ( Aside from running back and forth down the hall, xD not actually running btw.)

So my complaint was, that out of all the actual high/drunk/messed up people there, they stopped me. One of the other rovers excused me which made me happy of course cause I would have been really unhappy to be bothered about being drunk. When I passed him later after I was leaving he said " Oh sorry, he just thought you were drunk, but you're just really tired I saw you :>" Thanks I guess? I dont know, Fanime was great. But honestly if you are going to stop people who you think are drunk.

MAKE SURE THEY ARE. Maybe have a new or different method of checking people and leave the ones who are fine alone. It's extremely awkward for someone to say " Hey, we need to speak to you for a moment," then a 5 second awkward pause discussion between him and his friend then I'm excused.. Yeah..

Rovers: Well, just the one in particular that asked me to peace bind my walking cane. Fortunately after carefully explaining that my walking cane is in fact a walking cane used for walking, I was allowed to continue. I had hoped that it would be obvious...

For those who saw the fashion show on Saturday May 29th at 3-4pm at Stage Zero please send your feedback. Please be constructive and let us know if you would like to see a fashion show as part of FanimeCon yearly programming. Reply on this post. Thanks so much for your support.

Artist Alley:A separate section on the forum would be nice. It would make searching for answers that were previously asked much easier. When my friend and I were trying to find answers to our questions, a lot of the time the links were dead. Also the forum where AA info was under, it took a lot of time to wade through all the threads in order to find any information. In addition it would be nice to have registration go up earlier than it did this year. I'm local, but my friend who is the artist is from out of state. It was like a waiting game for her to see when registration would go up, and the price of plane tickets were steadily rising. I think this was previously mentioned, but maps of where artists are located would be great too. Other than that my friend and I had a great time, and we enjoyed how AA was held during the convention.

Tabletop gaming: The board game borrowing selection felt pretty disappointing IMO. Too many trivial pursuits and monopolies. Only thing interesting I saw in the selection was Arkham Horror. Most fun I had was randomly getting into a game of Battlestar Galactica as it was being set up on Sunday night which was brought by a con attendee.

In general, I'd love if there was a better way for people who want to play less mainstream (but much better IMO) games to find each other. We sort of did that for Arkham Horror on the forum before the con, but being able to do it during the con would be good too since most people probably don't even visit the forums. Perhaps a sheet or two at the board game table for people bringing games to list what they have and what times they're available to teach games. [/boardgamesnob]

Prop policy: Publish this further in advance of the con. Several props, which were not even functional as weapons, were made useless by the way that the weapons policy was worded and money was wasted on them. The rest of us should have to suffer because a few people were not using common sense and courtesy. In any case, one week before the con isn't enough time to prepare on props.

I lost half my cosplays to this D:

I'm sorry, but I also agree with this. Fanime probably has one of the strictest prop policies I've ever seen at an anime convention. I was walking around with a wooden sign, because it was part of my character. I actually cosplayed this character last year too, and I was never bothered about it. This year a staff member came up to me and told me to get it peace bonded. I agreed, thinking it shouldn't be too much trouble. I go up to where they were peace bonding and talk to two guys there and our conversation went something like:Me: "Do I need to get this peace bonded? A staff member told me I should"Them: "...What's the worse you're going to do with this? Give people splinters?"Me: "I actually sanded down the wood."Guy 1: "I know, I was joking. You should probably ask that girl down there."He points to the end of the table where another staff member is sitting, so I decide to go down there and again, ask if I need to get it peace bonded. She asks me what the sign says, saying she's not fluent in Japanese. I told her what the sign says. Confessions for 100 yen. Just like my character's sign in the anime. She then goes on to tell me I can't sell things and compares it to free hug signs. Then she tells me I need to change my sign all together...At this point I'm kind of angry. It is not in anyway similar to a free hug sign, It was a prop used for an accurate representation of the character. Even more than that, it was written in Japanese. We don't even use yen in America. I absolutely had no intention of making money off of my cosplay. I know that you guys are trying to be cautious, but I don't think that my sign was disruptive or caused problems. I can't think of a better way to word it. This was probably the only thing that really disappointed me about FanimeCon this year.Sign looked similar to this:

I'd like to add to the comment about the lack of a dealer's hall map. There wasn't even a list of dealers aside from on the website. When I tried to talk to staff in the dealer's hall, they weren't very helpful. One staff member snapped at me and the other treated me like I was a brand-new con-goer that didn't know what I was doing. I couldn't help but be a bit offended that she seemed to assume that I was clueless. She said I could "use the exercise" of walking through the hall searching for the booth because certainly I wouldn't be eating healthy during the weekend. I am in my mid-20s and have been attending anime conventions for 10 years now; I know better than to fill my con weekend with a diet of Pocky and Ramune and nothing else.As somebody else mentioned, that idea would just not work for me. My Fanime weekend was full of event participation where I had to be somewhere at a certain time every day, and I couldn't really spend the time walking down every aisle memorizing where every booth was.

I'd like to add to the comment about the lack of a dealer's hall map. There wasn't even a list of dealers aside from on the website. When I tried to talk to staff in the dealer's hall, they weren't very helpful. One staff member snapped at me and the other treated me like I was a brand-new con-goer that didn't know what I was doing. I couldn't help but be a bit offended that she seemed to assume that I was clueless. She said I could "use the exercise" of walking through the hall searching for the booth because certainly I wouldn't be eating healthy during the weekend. I am in my mid-20s and have been attending anime conventions for 10 years now; I know better than to fill my con weekend with a diet of Pocky and Ramune and nothing else.As somebody else mentioned, that idea would just not work for me. My Fanime weekend was full of event participation where I had to be somewhere at a certain time every day, and I couldn't really spend the time walking down every aisle memorizing where every booth was.

Maybe the Rovers just need to be nicer? & More courtesy. I work in costumer service, and I know it's not always fun to sit there well everyone is having fun. I know it's easy to snap at someone, but I DO NOT. Maybe next year ;/ the rovers should just be better trained to handle people. Sure no one wants to bug anyone, but if you are lost or want a map, want info etc. You should be able to ask for it and not be treated like a 5 year old.. ;/

I'd like to add to the comment about the lack of a dealer's hall map. There wasn't even a list of dealers aside from on the website. When I tried to talk to staff in the dealer's hall, they weren't very helpful. One staff member snapped at me and the other treated me like I was a brand-new con-goer that didn't know what I was doing. I couldn't help but be a bit offended that she seemed to assume that I was clueless. She said I could "use the exercise" of walking through the hall searching for the booth because certainly I wouldn't be eating healthy during the weekend. I am in my mid-20s and have been attending anime conventions for 10 years now; I know better than to fill my con weekend with a diet of Pocky and Ramune and nothing else.As somebody else mentioned, that idea would just not work for me. My Fanime weekend was full of event participation where I had to be somewhere at a certain time every day, and I couldn't really spend the time walking down every aisle memorizing where every booth was.

Maybe the Rovers just need to be nicer? & More courtesy. I work in costumer service, and I know it's not always fun to sit there well everyone is having fun. I know it's easy to snap at someone, but I DO NOT. Maybe next year ;/ the rovers should just be better trained to handle people. Sure no one wants to bug anyone, but if you are lost or want a map, want info etc. You should be able to ask for it and not be treated like a 5 year old.. ;/

You're assuming it was a Rover SCPeeps. ;PWe were trained to direct any questions we could not answer ourselves to the info desk.

As for a Rover stopping you, it's a subjective thing. You might not look intoxicated to some people, but you might look so to others. Other than visual and odor check how (we're not SJPD or security guards) are we going to check you? The more understanding and cooperative (which i'm sure you were) you are the faster it is for you to get back to the fun.

If you feel like you were clearly mistreated and have a name or badge number you could bring the situation to the attention of ConOps.

the staff needs to keep better tabs on who is using what and how they are using it. One person on Saturday night kept getting mad at his game and slamming the controller on the ground. I told a staffer who just brushed me off.

Who was slamming their controller? And who was the staffer that brushed it out? Equipment should be treated with respect, while at the same time staff should be aware of the issues. We would like to get the names or badge number if possible.

At 2AM in the morning, when most people are sleeping or partying in their rooms and there isn't much traffic flows, those entrance/exits that are supposed to help the congoers become more of a hindrance. You could probably just open both doors, and have the staff sit in the center but a little inside the room and have people enter/exit from their right like standard traffic flow. They only need to check the badges of the people from the side entering then, but still allows people to enter or exit from both sides to go back to their respective hotels.

My biggest problem was.... The in/out policy for the game room. It was a giant pain. GIANT. I understand the room has tons of traffic, but late into the night it was still being enforced. If I am at one end already and am going that way, I don't want to backtrack aaaaaaalll the way the opposite direction to get back to where I originally was, only outside the door.

One minor complaint... I don't really understand why there is a SPECIFIC entrance and exit for the games room. Do any of the other areas have this?

Due to the amount of traffic that area gets, we want to keep the flow of traffic going smoothly, hence why an Enter/Exit area is enforced. This also helps reduce the number of non-attendees trying to steal equipment from any department in that room, in addition of making the Staff/Volunteer jobs easy to tab each and every badge. We have dealt with numerous people who snuck in and out of the area in the past without a badge, but that isn't happening anymore.

We could do a section to where after 1 AM until 8 AM in the morning, all sides can be enter and exit. However, we are concerned that this will be a bad habit to where "Oh, it was enter/exit before, and why can't we do it anymore" effect. Also, we cannot implement this factor if heavy traffic comes through even at nighttime. I remember Sunday Later Night having some heavy traffic since everyone has done almost everything they wanted to do. We'll figure something out.

Back to the pocket guide, thank you for the FanimeCon mobile schedule. I think that format was way more helpful than the pocket guide.http://m.fanime.comPlus, it was more accessible to those with a smartphone or wi-fi connection (like me and my PSP). I'd wish there were more free wi-fi spots available outside the convention center waiting in line for masquerade, musicfest, and registration.

Props to Fanime for also taping traffic lines down the halls, especially in front of Stage Zero. The flow around there was particularly smooth. Wish you can extend it throughout the convention center

Suggestions:-hologram logos for badges to prevent fraud and stuff-more outdoor-based or off-site activities (not cosplay gatherings) to reduce congestion inside convention center and hotels-"quick clean" room for those with funk, or just want a freshen-up, without having to walk around and to hotel room-increase A/C level, I like it cold-bright yellow staff shirts instead of black or beige (2003 and 2004's color)-use Tech Museum's IMAX theater for another video room-use Parkside Hall or South Hall as the new dealers room or dedicated swap meet room

RegistrationI think the reg system is as effective as it can be, given the number of attendees (more on that in a sec) and that, I think, the desire is to get folks taken care of and into the festivities as quickly and painlessly as possible.

Convention Enjoyment: get in their face!Reg and the reg lines are an area where FC can make an investment and take some of the suggestions and hints off of the forums and put them to use: that is, some of the great suggestions and postings you make here about enjoying the con? Print them. Large. Makes signs, posters and get them in front of people's faces. For those things that you want to be polite about, but need to make a point, make the point. If you're adamant about behaviors, tolerance and hygiene, don't apologize about it. The 99.9% who don't complain are silently thanking you.

Dealer's RoomCool group of dealers with the exception of a couple of ass-hats (one 'weapon' dealer and one guy who looked like he was expecting everyone to steal from him. Or he was constipated.)A few folks were surprised not to see, say, Kinokuniya or a music store or dealer present... I know the idea is not to repeat dealers, try to keep the cross-over down, and I don't know the thought on bringing heavy hitters in or not, but it seems like the room can expand a bit, and the tables at back be reduced. Someone may want to find a way to let the dealers in on that the fans, ahem, know what a lot of the merchandise can be got for. We want them to do well, but man, when I can see something Fri, get it online for 15-20% less on Sat and have it Tuesday... makes me less willing to support the dealers, and I feel bad cuz I know they put a lot of $ into being there, and time. I dug that a couple of them were hitting their first cons, hope they did well. Hours were good, no one seemed interested in bargaining on Monday though?

PanelsMain gripe was not easily seeing which panels the guests were going to be in, and totally mis-judging, based on the panel titles and times, the focus of the art panels I would have loved to sit in. Signage or additions to the guides about the guests and where to sit in with them would rock. I completely missed that the GoH names were on the master panels board (as I somehow completely missed that???)

Lines... EverywhereWhat's the general feel of how people are sacrificing time to line-squatting inst. of seeing more of the convention, and being sure, even if arriving later, of getting seats? Can/should panel room sizes be re-thought? Too many cons lose folks b/c it simply isn't worth it to sit for 5 or 6 hours in a ten hour day for one or two panels.

Props and weaponsPlaying devil's advocate, this needs to come down to some common sense. The fact that so much is allowed in any form, even bonded, is interesting to me. Being held chiefly in the CC, we're hanging out under the auspices of the city, and SJPD has some pretty straight-up policies about weapons and what reasonably appears to be real or not, as well as potentially used as a weapon, or not. You may understand 'all in good fun', but the reality of maintaining the health and safety of over 15000 people is a serious business, and one that has little leeway. As it is, I saw some things that I couldn't believe were passing unchallenged. If you feel your work was dealt some kind of blow b/c you couldn't hang or flash about your favorite doom devices, stop a second for a reality check. And yeah, I know it sucks when some really innocent piece of your costume also gets looked at sideways, but... This is a common issue at every convention, large ones like this have to err on the safer side. One major incident, well, you don't want to think about the repercussions.

Pocket GuideYeah, the flippy back and forth was a bit screwy, esp the midnight cross-overs. But Pocket Guides do rock, so please continue to make them. Great for notes and such too... so maybe add a page or a few in for that?

GuestsHopefully Fanime will be on of the cons that always strives to bring over the big guns from Japan, the folks who are involved from day one; writers, directors, artists, musicians, personalities, actors... I personally don't care much for the hangers on and glorified groupies that smaller cons seem to have to bring in. This year's group was pretty solid. Huge on FLOW, LM.C, Mamoru Yokota, Hiroyuki Yamaga, Daisuke Ishiwatari.

I just have to throw in my opinion on the prop rules as well; some of the best costumes I've ever seen are supported by great props. Some regulation is acceptible, but I agree sometimes it's just going too far. Things like the sign rule are designed to prevent certain messages, not ruin someone's hard work designed to genuinely portray a character. Last year my staff was almost not allowed because it broke into two pieces for ease of transport. Rather than complain about the current interpretation of the rules, I believe that these should be lightened up first. After that, perhaps there should be a more equal decision on props between people doing peace bonding; if something is questionable, you should be able to get a second opinion. I totally agree there should have been no problem whatsoever with that sign; even if someone understands it, it's not like anybody is going to ask you for what's on the sign.

Heavens no I didn't act rude or anything. But the awkward time i spent when they called me over and I stood there waiting was to me alittle violating. Having two people talk about you and you just stand there. Awkward much.

The only good thing about it was the guy who excused me, and actually bothered to explain a whole 2 hours later that one of them thought I was drunk. Why didn't they just say? Oh sorry just checking, it was a.

" Oh Nevermind,you can go "

Me ".. What?... what was that about.."

" It's fine, you can go,"

me "..... uhhh.. Okay.."

But half kudos to the guy who told me why I was first stopped in the first place. If I ever see you again I will pat you on the back ;> Maybe.

Is it just me, or is Fanime FREEZING in the evening? In the video rooms especially, I was SO COLD. I'm sort of sensitive to the chill, sharp air from air conditioners, and I ended up getting a nasty headache from the AC during bingo. My whole face hurt! Is there anyway they can turn down the AC in the evenings? I also had this problem last year.

agreed. my freinds and i were watching a series and we all left because it was too cold in there.

Cons- Dealer's room was probably the worst dealer's room for me in the 10 years i've gone to fanime. this, of course, is not fanime's fault as it is a confluence of factors outside the convention's control. it is also subjective as i'm sure there is someone out there who got a lot of "stuff" they were pleased with and felt was obtained for a fair price.- Asian film room is one of my favorite parts of fanime, but this year there was only 1 film I really wanted to see, and it was scheduled at 5am on Monday, which made it very difficult to attend. I understand that scheduling is scheduling and there is always something that needs to go in that spot and it is a decision that must be made to the ire of someone out there. The film in question "Heaven's Door" was one I felt perhaps could have used a more 'prime' spot than arguably the worst possible slot (the film is directed by the same person who directed "Tekkonkinkreet" and has a soundtrack by Plaid). Failing that maybe having 2 asian film rooms so there could be encores of films or at least 2 showings of each film at a different time as has been done in years past would alleviate this?

Pros- Registration : great job as usual. Never had a problem with reg at fanime.- Swap Meet : had a lot of great people / items and I enjoyed having it in the arcade. Was more interested in merch here than in dealer's room to be honest.- Video Rooms : like registration great job as usual. had nearly no technical issues in the video's i saw, many movies/series I wanted to see.- Most panels were great and started on-time and had excellent content. The ones that weren't so great were largely the fault of the presenter or situations outside of fanime's control.- Arcade : had a great selection of games for someone like me. very satisfied.- Mobile schedule was very nice. very useful if you have a smartphone/laptop.

Overall one of the best fanime conventions in the 10 i've been to, and that's no easy task! i know it's a hard line to balance for fanime to retain it's unique 'culture' as compared to other conventions, while still supporting a lot of attendees and running things smoothly. they certainly accomplished that this year in my experience. so maybe 80-85%/B?

Depends on who you talked to and how you came across I think. IMO as a consumer in the dealers hall I vote with my feet, and I figure I can always get x online or from someone else, it doesn't have to be at con right then from a particular dealer. Otherwise impulse buying can slap you and leave you with buyer's remorse. I only bought on Monday as dealers tend to discount on the last day or at least are more open to it vs. earlier days. All the manga I got was discounted from dealers who stated clearly that they were marking down. In hindsight I could have countered by asking for a little more of a discount on 4 School Rumble mangas I bought from 1 dealer but jumped on their offer too quickly. I was also able to get a collective $6 off on 2 Eva figures by getting the pair and asking although they weren't marked as discounted but I figured what the heck, just ask.

- Asian film room is one of my favorite parts of fanime, but this year there was only 1 film I really wanted to see, and it was scheduled at 5am on Monday, which made it very difficult to attend. I understand that scheduling is scheduling and there is always something that needs to go in that spot and it is a decision that must be made to the ire of someone out there. The film in question "Heaven's Door" was one I felt perhaps could have used a more 'prime' spot than arguably the worst possible slot (the film is directed by the same person who directed "Tekkonkinkreet" and has a soundtrack by Plaid). Failing that maybe having 2 asian film rooms so there could be encores of films or at least 2 showings of each film at a different time as has been done in years past would alleviate this?

I agree with this. I already complained about getting rid of my beloved Asian drama room, but there was seriously nothing I wanted to watch from the Asian film room. Almost everything there was a crime/action flick during prime hours. It really sucked because I don't like action movies at all and I prefer girl movies/drama. I suggest next year trying to be more balanced. There are a lot of girls who'd be interested in watching something that isn't an action flick.